Another related question, which is part of the SETUP, is the WHY. In superhero comics each hero often has a fundamental WHY. Batman fights crime because he saw his parents killed in front of him. Spidey fights crime due to guilt over not having prevented
his uncle Ben’s death. The Phantom fights crime because it is a family tradition. I don’t fight crime because I am a craven coward!
But, each story also has a WHY or MOTIVATION of its own. In Alan Moore’s From Hell, the WHAT or PREMISE, is a speculative retelling of the Jack the Ripper tale. The WHY is that the prostitutes are killed to hide the existence of a bastard child of Royalty.
While I have correctly classified the WHY as part of the SETUP. It may be held in reserve until the CONFLICT or the RESOLUTION of the story, for the sake of dramatic revelation. This can be a useful tool. In another Alan Moore opus, The Watchmen, the ultimate purpose behind the killing of the ‘masks’ is effectively held back until the resolution of the story.
Each character will also have a personal WHY. In fact, if they don’t have a compelling MOTIVE for continuing in the conflict, the story will be unconvincing. Even the lowliest support characters in the narrative should have some believable reason to stay involved.
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